One special Wednesday and an awful Tuesday...

Last Wednesday afternoon one chocolate-y chocolate cupcake, three female loveables, 120 + birthday greetings and I got into a work van and went to visit Miss Agnes.

It took forever for us to get there... (i always seem to find a way to manage to take the long way)

The peanut gallery (my loveable thugs) couldn't keep their better ideas to themselves.

'This is my neighborhood, I know my way around"

" you could have taken this street",

"or that street"

"You could have missed all this traffic"

" or this construction"

(damn know it all's)

Driving the scenic route gave me plenty of time to them the life story of all the Old Dolls and for good measure I also told them about Uncle Chug... (thank goodness I did, I'll get to that later)

When we rounded the corner to get to the place Miss Agnes calls home I got a lump in my throat when I saw the entire front yard (she lives on a huge corner lot) held a sign made up of giant sized letters telling the whole wide world that Anges "so and so" had turned the big 100...

There was also a giant colorful cardboard birthday cake w/ candles on the lawn and baseballs as high as my waist (Miss Agnes is a great big baseball fan-anic, she never misses a game, wears a baseball hat while watching and enjoys a hot dog with mustard every Detroit Tiger game, she can also name the players)...

The Old Dolls sat in their usual places around the dining room table, they all wore happy birthday hats and smudges of white icing on their wrinkled faces.

The house was so filled with well wishers that Miss Agnes didn't notice us come in the front door.

I came around and crouched down beside her and gave her a big hug.."where are the kids?" she asked second after first saying "I knew you'd come".

It tickled me that she would remember that I was planning to bring the kids.

The girls simply melted when Agnes took each of their hands into her's and looked into their faces and said their names aloud when I introduced them.

To one she said "do you know that I am one hundred years old today, one hundred!!!"...which made me laugh, seeing as the whole place was lighted up with celebrating our dear 100 year old Agnes.

The other guests mingled with my girls who made me proud with their appropriateness.

When they went missing for some time I found them in the kitchen with Uncle Chug.

He's a one man entertainment committee that belongs to the homeowners.

I'd forewarned the lovables that if he was there they needed to be prepared for bad jokes and even worse serenading...

In the middle of one of his stories/joke(s) he'll suddenly and without warning take a deep dip sideways (gathering bundles of air I assume) he'll push himself forward, grab the nearest hand and bellow  "I FOUND MA THRILLS ON-A BLUEBERRY HILL"....

Sometimes it's more than one song per story/joke.

Today it was Satchmo Armstrong's version of "IT'S A WONDERRRRRR-FULLLLL-WORLD" belted on "belt..."

Even with the warning he still managed to scare the crap outta the loveables when he went off.

He dipped, gathered air, gravelly voice growled at least three songs for the girls.

The couldn't hold back their giggles...which is exactly what makes Uncle Chug tick.

His drug of choice, smiles and giggles from girls, young and old.

He told the girls how he got drafted with Elvis, ("you do know who Elvis is, right?" he asked) and even though I wanted to know if he REALLY got drafted with Elvis we had no time to stick around and hear the answer, plus another song, then a joke, followed by another song...(just sayin)

When we were finally able to get away we ran to the van, then the girls turned around and asked to get a picture in front of Miss Agnes's big 100.

The loveables chattered about Miss Agnes and the birthday party the whole way back to work, they really enjoyed this diversion to their usual boring school day.

It's not every day you get to meet a 100 year old doll and get crooned to by a old lady's man.


Wednesday's News....reporting about a terrible Tuesday

I can't believe a weeks gone by since our visit to Miss Agnes'... (there was a newspaper clipping about her birthday and she was featured in an online story too...as soon as I find it I'll post it)

I worked a 12.5 hour day yesterday (which sucked big time, I could hardly carry my 49+ yr old azz up the stairs when I got home)

I suffered through a training where I was forced to inquire around if anyone brought toothpicks (Fred Flintstone's trick to keep your eyes propped open during bouts of extreme drowsiness)... the training was to learn about Motivational Interviewing (wonder why the culinary lady would need to have that?? yeah, me too) as we suffered through the monotone 4 hour droning of the trainer to learn/understand the skill/technique called MI.. I whispered to my co-worker sitting next to me " I already do this (naturally)" to which he responded "you are so arrogant"...

"Well duuuhhh"......

"A little levity will save many a good heavy thing from sinking" ~ Samuel Butler